It seems to have reappeared @Dexter

Thank you! Streetlight was able to help bring it out of an auto-spam box.

Love is as much emotion as it is a cognitive function. Emotions generate bias. In fact, bias is what limits or corrupts our orientation to others and to the world around us. The bias can come from limited knowledge and from limited experience. It tends to be inward-looking in that it seeks to reduce inner tension or cognitive dissonance...if you prefer.

For me, honesty, responsibility, integrity, duty...or perhaps the Seven Duties* proposed by William Ross are good places to start. The idea is to encourage a sense of outreach from the mind. Get the young people to understand that life will be solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short if they first seek to serve their own interests and place the interests of others never higher than second. This is closely linked with what have been proposed as the stages of moral development by such people as Lawrence Kohlberg. While not a perfect model, it's still useful for monitoring the development of youth.


*Promise keeping

Fidelity

Gratitude for favours

Non-maleficence

Beneficence

Self-improvement

Justice

I applaud and honour your vocation.

I am trying to narrow down the main ethical and moral values to emphasize throughout the story. I need help dissecting which values would be considered the most important, why, and in what aspect? — Dexter

It is perhaps particularly appropriate to the times to begin with truth and honesty. It's as old as Aesop's 'The Boy who Cried Wolf', but I would want to relate it to advertising and political spin. To the extent that we do not tell the truth reliably, we undermine meaning and communication, and become isolated from each other, in the end, facing the wolf alone. Everything of society, including your program, depends on truth.

'Love' is both a vague and a horribly embarrassing word for your target age-group. I would talk about 'kindness'. Kindness implies inclusiveness, that the other is my kind, that anyone who suffers is my kind, because I can suffer. This relates to the new child in school, the child that is bullied, the child that has a disability, the child that is unhappy. And then in the world, it relates to the homeless, the jobless, the exploited, the refugee.

Courage. When the world is lying when the world is hating, one needs courage to stand with the victim and against the bully, to speak the truth that makes the teacher, never mind the bully uncomfortable. To deny what everyone finds it convenient to affirm, because this is the truth.

Faith. Not the cheap faith of recitation, but the faith that holds you to your vocation. To believe in justice when there is no justice, in love when there is no love, in peace when there is no peace. Faith in humanity when humans are inhuman.

But there is a solemn warning I must give. Children do not learn from programs so much as they learn from teachers. If the teacher recites the program but does not live it, it is from his life that children will learn and not the program, because if the teacher does not live the program then he is not telling the truth himself and communication is destroyed; the program becomes meaningless.

Here's a song for you, and for every hung-up person in the whole wide universe: https://www.bobdylan.com/songs/chimes-freedom/

This year, I will not be teaching and am taking time off to design a program that will hopefully act as a "life simulator", placing the students in moral and ethical situations and having them think their way through these scenarios.

With that said, I am trying to narrow down the main ethical and moral values to emphasize throughout the story. I need help dissecting which values would be considered the most important, why, and in what aspect?

Please understand, I am not trying to "brainwash" the students by telling them what exactly is right and wrong. Not every scenario appears black or white, depending on the situation. Instead, I am trying to guide them to think for themselves and having them determine what is right and wrong based on the evidence provided. — Dexter

Then simply the best way is to put them to think themselves of the issues. Hopefully the "life Simulator" isn't a Computer program, as the best way is to make the students interact with each other.

Here's one example from a totally different field. A reservist instructor, who was by civilian profession a lawyer, was given 45 minutes to teach a full room of other reservists the laws of war. Arriving to the room he immediately ordered the people to form smaller groups (hence they had to do things with others) and gave them just one question to answer: what did they think laws of war were? After a brief interlude every group had to present their answer and within following discussion of the answers, the instructor could teach the basics of the law and got the chance to repeat the most important aspects several times.

So if you want the students to think themselves, the question which values should be considered the most important isn't perhaps something you need to have a correct answer like in mathematics. It's what the student should conclude themselves. In the "Simulator" there are obviously situations where you need to make an ethical or moral decision. Which one do they think is more important than another? Likely children will not have totally different ideas from adults. The most important thing is just to get them to think these issues and find themselves their own answers.

First, keep up the good work, which teaching children is.

Despite having thought a lot about the question of what and how to teach children, I'm not sure. Of course, teachers generally do not have free reign over what they will teach. The state and the school district have guidelines. Parents have some input. There are many things that must be taught: reading, spelling, writing, vocabulary, various arithmetic skills, music, art, and so on. In elementary schools (so I understand it, anyway) children learn to read. By the 7th grade, students should be reading to learn.

The classroom itself is always its own subject, as is the behavior of the teacher. I don't think I had any bad elementary school teachers; 5th was probably the least good -- I was in a combined 5th and 6th grade class. But even then, it wasn't bad.

There generally is no lesson plan for the kind of unstructured experiences the students will have with each other and with the teacher. The unstructured experiences are no less important than phonics lessons for instance. In elementary school children are all learning (or not) how to interact in all sorts of circumstances. A lot of those experiences will shape the future child quite a bit.

School seems to work pretty well for students who do not come from impoverished environments where life is unpredictable, often hostile, disappointing, uncaring, and in various ways, unpleasant. The good development that happens at home can continue at school. For children with disrupted environments, home life is not good, and school life may not appear as just another difficult travail.

Thank you very much for your response. I actually agree with you on the topic about love and I am actually rethinking it as one of the main values to include. Like you mentioned, since it is as much of an emotion as it is a cognitive function, could it even be considered a value?

I understand certain beliefs and philosophies avoid the concepts of love because of the worldly attachments it brings and can fuel a fiery passion that could easily get out of hand depending on how it's handled.

However, since the attachments of love are nearly instinctual and inevitable in ones lifetime, even if they did let go of the feelings and illusions of love at some point in their life, do you think the topic and concepts of love are still important to address? Since my target audience is 9-10 year old children in the lower/middle class in the U.S., chances are they already uphold ideas of love in their own household. I was thinking that instead of turning them away from ideas of love and the bias it can bring to their choices and decisions, I would like to try and nurture other philosophies that promote the happiness that love can bring.

The main reason I would still want to promote ideas surrounding love is because another large objective I have for my students is to use philosophy to find happiness, which I think is one of the, if not, the ultimate goal in life. Obviously, they can find happiness without love, but as a social norm and natural instinct, most people still tend to want to find a significant other. In this day in age, it seems the majority of people seem to have a twisted perception on what love is and the happiness that it can potentially bring. In other psychological studies, a very common quality found in most people who considered themselves "happy", had and cherished the relationships they had with others or a hobby they loved.

Regardless, I cannot refute your statements on the concept of love. Therefore, I will most definitely present the bias and dangers that love can bring as well as the goodness it can bring, if nurtured appropriately. Would you think this to be a better way of presenting it? Or like I stated earlier, could love even be considered a value as much as it is an emotion?

P.S. Thank you very much for the research from William and Lawrence Kohlberg. The information you presented is incredibly valuable and I am researching both more extensively!

KISS the topic! (Not the students!!) Treat them with respect; insist they treat their world with respect - show them how; explain what it means and how it works. Never raise your voice. Set a high standard of discipline. Make all this a matter of simple expectation. Assume they can and will succeed. Let them know they can.

And of course, be sure you know what their age-appropriate abilities are. The measure isn't how wonderful you are, but what, at the end of the hour, class, day, week, month, semester, year, they know and can do.

Be content with small and incremental accomplishments, if they're solid. They're children and they have a long way to go. In your time with them, some will move faster and do more than others. But the differences are transitory and today's slowpoke may be next years whiz-kid. Build slowly, carefully, usually methodically and you will be astonished at what you all have accomplished by years end.

And take a good look at this book:

https://www.amazon.com/Skillful-Teacher-Comprehensive-Resource-Improving/dp/1886822611/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=YES9JY42BNY6N9PCKDCC

First, thank you very much for your kind words.

As for the topic of love, the reason I included it is in a previous reply I made earlier if you'd like to read it. If you do, I wouldn't mind hearing your opinion on it as well and/or whether or not I should make adjustments.

Thank you for your suggestions and description behind each value and characteristic. Your words provide a deeper context that I can make sure I include within the story.

Speaking of truth and ethics, do you think it would also be appropriate to bring up ideas of lying and whether or not it is okay to lie?

For example, telling "white lies" to protect the feelings of another or lying to a Nazi Officer about knowing the whereabouts of Jewish people during WWII. To use a hypothetical example of advertising and politics, what if a group of people were already brainwashed by a political figure who covertly wants to harm the government and it's citizens and the only effective way to make sure they lose in the upcoming election is to bend the truth for the opposing candidate in hopes that the people change their favor. Or would that be unethical as well and another solution should be found?

I want the students to enter this thought process on their own, but I know I must guide them to understand that every scenario is different and they must differentiate when it is for the benefit of the overall good, which can depend on what they think good is.

Finally, I would just like you to know that this "program" as I called it earlier, is truly much more than the word that represents it. Philosophy, while I may not see it in the same way I did when I was much younger, has guided my life's purpose. Through this program, I'm extending many skills I have developed in my life to bring to life another world that the children may live through. Every aspect of the school day is integrated in this program. Every academic subject, moral theme, and fantastical story is interwoven and integrated into one thing making learning an entirely new experience for the kids. On top of that, I am doing my own artwork, music, narrative story, educational games, and classroom procedures. This program is actually an extension of my life that I am sharing with the students and it is as much for me as it is for them.

All I am truly trying to express is that this program is my life's work and I will live it for almost every year that I am alive after this year. The knowledge and wisdom that is shared within this thread is much more important than many of of the members here may understand. I truly thank you and everyone else on this thread who has shared their wisdom by responding.

Thank you very much for your response!
First, you are correct, this is definitely not a computer program. I wrote about it in the last two paragraphs of my reply to unenlightened. But in short, the program is like an entirely new world that the students step into every time they enter my classroom.

The example you included in your story is most definitely an effective and engaging way to help students learn. There have been times in the classroom where I have taught things very similarly. However, I felt there was one thing missing from these lessons. This was their general interest in the said topic. While some may be more interested than others, it is incredibly difficult to get every person truly engaged, even if they are doing it.

Through this program, I am wanting kids to be invested within the story. From past experiences in the classroom, the more invested they are within the story, the more they are invested in the assignment, since they are integrated as one. This way, when I do teach lessons similar to the example you presented, there is a higher chance for every student to be more engaged while still thinking for themselves.

But you are correct, I know that there is no right answer with this question. Everyone holds each value differently but what I am looking for is; what are the values they value most and why? Behind the lens of every persons they have a deeper and more complex reasoning behind why they think one value holds higher than another. I am just wanting to learn about their reasons on why because their view could match one of my own students' potential views.

Within the story of this program, I will control what situations and scenarios are presented to them. I am trying to narrow it down to which types of moral lessons and values I should emphasize while presenting them with situations that would be more relatable to them in their present or future.

One thing you mentioned was that it was important to just get them to think of these issues and find themselves their own answers. Do you not believe that could cause harm to a student or give them a reason to not do justice if they are not guided? Plato states, "a man who acts morally always ends up worse off than a guy who acts immorally." I have found this quote to be awfully true fairly often, so what if the student realizes that it is easier to be immoral?

I suppose the real question would be, is it most important to have them find their own answer or to help guide them to find the answer? Please understand that when I say guide, I am not giving them the answer, so in a sense, they are still finding the answer on their own, yet through guidance, they can learn from the mistakes of others in the past.

Thanks for your response and kind words Bitter Crank!

You are 100% correct in what you say about school district guidelines and core subject academics. I have taught for several years and for a while, was puzzled on how I could fit moral education within the lessons. From a purely academic standpoint, there is still not enough time of the day to fit everything in.

But what if I were disguise all of the aspects of school as a fantastical experience that they live through? The program I developed abides by all district rules and requirements and actually is aligned with curriculum and the state test. It also provides enough consistent practice and differentiation within subject areas and closely integrates all subjects together so that students can see how all subjects are interrelated. After my principal and assistant principal heard about it, they observed my classroom to see it and were astonished by how well it ran and how genuinely engaged the students were.

But just as you mentioned, their home life is a significant factor in their success in the classroom. One part of my goal is to have an incredible classroom community where as long as they practice these moral values as an individual in the classroom, they will rise together as a class, allowing them to feel safe and secure for at least part of their day. However, this is obviously much harder said than done, but I'm becoming a better teacher every year, so hopefully it will come sooner than later.

Thank you very much for your response tim!
Your words could not be more true. In my previous years of teaching, I've learned bits and pieces every year. I did not realize how much students could improve just from kind words and believing in them. I will do as your advice says!

Welcome to, @Dexter.

Teaching children is among the most important parts of civilized societies.
(And, recalling how I was at that age, what a rough job.) :D

Important moral stuff to teach... Good question.
Responsibility, that others (not just humans by the way) are much like you (don't harm them), but different also (diversity is excellent), that your own dislike for harm and liking freedom extends equally to others, empathy, sympathy, decency, respect and acceptance, self-ownership, ...
I'm not a school teacher by education, don't know much about the details.

Just teach them good critical thinking. Morals will follow.

Speaking of truth and ethics, do you think it would also be appropriate to bring up ideas of lying and whether or not it is okay to lie? — Dexter

Well sure. But the question only arises in the context of it not being ok in general. My own view is that every lie is destructive of meaning, and of communication, and of society. If I never tell my wife her bum looks big in that, my reassurances become meaningless. So a lie needs a strong justification, just as violence does. It must be the exception, the emergency, a desperate measure.

I imagine you are familiar with these, but just in case,

Paolo Friere
A S Neill
John Holt
J Krishnamurti

There's not much I might say on love or education that they haven't said already with more eloquence, rigour, and authority of experience than I can muster.

It is perhaps particularly appropriate to the times to begin with truth and honesty. It's as old as Aesop's 'The Boy who Cried Wolf', but I would want to relate it to advertising and political spin. To the extent that we do not tell the truth reliably, we undermine meaning and communication, and become isolated from each other, in the end, facing the wolf alone. Everything of society, including your program, depends on truth. — unenlightened

Sounds like Jordan Peterson.

1. Honesty
2. Loyalty
3. Chastity
4. Gratitude
5. Love/Compassion

Sounds like Jordan Peterson. — Agustino

Then it must be wrong.

No, it sounds like him, because he is a plausible deceiver.

Hi,
What worked best for me was knowing what it might mean to be in the circumstance I'm at. It helped me determine which kind of discipline I aimed to instil into myself. For example, when I was 12 yrs old I was told how adolescents behave, what they think is most significant, how they often think with regards to authority, how they bend to peer and social pressure, etc. The wierdest thing ended up happening, even though I went through all the stuff adolescents and teenagers do, because at the back of my mind I had an outline of it all and how best to maintain perspective, I managed to avoid getting sucked in too deep into things. It's like being told beforehand that drinking (alcohol) everyday or past social occasions is a sign of alcoholism. So, when you start developing the desire to drink everyday or even past a certain distinct limit, you become aware in your mind that there is a problem. I still do that nowadays, I try to see how my actions influence the different mind-sets I interact with and it paints a picture of what relationships we could have and what signs to watch out for.

The same can be done with morals. Teach them what it means to have certain qualities at their age e.g., honesty (for me it related to superman who never told lies, but then there's the whole hidden identity thing, which is good because it gives a sort of perspective), courage, helpfulness, duty, etc. If possible, teach them to formulate narratives where they decide what qualities the characters have and the reasons for having them. This way they will be able to see themselves in a certain spectrum and perhaps even understand how shades of good and evil interact.

As to love, you can teach the difference between attraction, lust (desire) and love. Perhaps you could teach them how attraction if fleeting, lust is born of selfish ill-regulated impulses and that love is unbiased. Also, it cannot be love if it is not expressed with intelligence and integrity. (There is no careless love) - I don't have any exercise in mind for this, but I'm sure you can manage.

Oh, and whatever they do, teach them it's about having fun. I would totally repeat primary school - best years of my life. Teach them to discover things about life in fun ways. The brain will produce the right hormones when learning is mixed with fun activities and they will last longer in the memory and create the right type of tendencies and dependencies.

Last but not least, the most important lesson in life is that: no matter what, no matter when, we can and should always put the effort to become better. Self-improvement is the best superhero power to have. (I think the lesson is adaptability, or something). Anyway, all the best and have fun doin' it.

One thing you mentioned was that it was important to just get them to think of these issues and find themselves their own answers. Do you not believe that could cause harm to a student or give them a reason to not do justice if they are not guided? — Dexter

I personally don't think so. Socratic questioning can give that guidance. And usually children aren't so dissappointed or frustrated about reality that they would opt for immoral choices (at least when asked openly). And if a pupil gives a totally immoral,ethically bad answer, then you can disagree.

One has to be consistent with children. If one says that they can freely think about the issues, then one shouldn't push them for a correct answer. Smart children will notice if the teacher by his or her actions tells them "Speak freely about these issues... but I want you make the same conclusions I am advocating". The teacher can be an authority figure to the pupils, so one has to be careful with this. Many times children notice this and especially remember it later if some teacher has in a hidden way pushed (or is thought to have pushed) a political agenda what the pupils later as adults are against themselves.

I suppose the real question would be, is it most important to have them find their own answer or to help guide them to find the answer? — Dexter

Guidance is what school is for, yet in this case just to get the students thinking about these issues would be an objective in my view. Many simply won't care so much about philosophy or moral ethics. Good way is to take the examples from things the children are interested in and give guidance like "Philosopher X or philosophic school Y answered this problem this way, who would think the answer is good?". Everything depends a lot just how old the children are and how seriously they are taking school. But that quote from Plato is a great example and a topic.

It is my position that all antisocial behaviours, self-serving that they are, are transgressions of theft. When we breach contracts and informal agreements, we rob each other of dignity and of our natural inclination to trust one another. This is why Ross mentions 'promise-keeping'. Societies were not built on stealing, deceit, injury, insult, and on letting such things go by simply because we lack courage, integrity, and the will to correct such faults, or to prevent them as best we can. It's the reasoning behind much of our legal systems.

We dignify the acts of kindness we receive when we express our gratitude for them. Naturally, we tend to reinforce those behaviours thereby.

We enhance our lives, and by extension the lives of others, when we seek to improve ourselves in any capacity.

Essentially, when our chief orientation is inward, we are most likely to raise the mistrust in, and to discourage co-operation from, others. Surely it is easy to see how this impoverishes all involved to an extent, and that it makes living more onerous.

The values of trust, honesty, integrity, responsibility/accountability, and contrition when we understand how we have caused injury, intended or otherwise, are essential values for young adults to adopt and to adhere to as strictly as their will permits.

Hello Dexter,

Firstly, Forgive me If my post is so late as to be irrelevant at this point.

In regards to love and the many forms it may take, I believe love can be unified if defined as genuine affection and concern for something be it a family member, friend, lover, passion, deity etc. While one may wish to express their love to a family member and a lover differently the underlying affection and the concern said affection spawns seems to be the motivation in common.

Do you not believe that could cause harm to a student or give them a reason to not do justice if they are not guided? Plato states, "a man who acts morally always ends up worse off than a guy who acts immorally." — Dexter

Regarding your concerns in leaving students unguided in their discovery of moral philosophy, I can understand, especially as we both see at least some truth value in Plato's statement. As for this specific case motivation must be offered for children and adults both to remain moral despite this disadvantage. I believe that generally there are no material rewards to be gained, for someone to choose morality even in the face of this truth they would have to be motivated by the desire to be good for its own sake. Achieving your moral ambition enables you to respect yourself, likely inspire others and reduce if even just an increment the cruel nature of reality. If liberty from your baser self and self respect are insufficient motivators than I suppose that the statement should be delivered with caution if at all.

Finally as for the ethics and morals I believe most important for your pupils to learn:

1) Compassion - To understand and empathize is to learn, to broaden perspective and enable genuine connection through your mutual understanding and bridging of the fundamental isolation of our subjective self aware existences.

2) Honesty- Beyond refraining from deception large or small, to face the truth of ones self be it good or bad allows an opportunity to truly connect to people, to improve and enjoy the truth. With no need to lie nor a desire to do so, one is always free, and can really be seen for who they are.

3) Bravery- To be honest one may have to face harsh truths, to be compassionate one must feel others pain and both tasks are arduous but If a person can face these fears they will have all they need to be a Genuine, Empathetic and Understanding being. To try and become such a person would be a goal virtuous enough, but were they to achieve this goal they would be pleasant company to any of our kind.
Shining Exemplars of our otherwise often cruel, arrogant and cowardly race.

I worked as a teacher in Primary school for some 12 years. The values I ended up with were two: responsibility and autonomy. Also, I had a value for myself, that was the attitude of respecting my pupils and the parents. I considered them my clients, people who hired me for the job of keeping an atmosphere of personal security, structure and guidance so that they could develop the capacities stated in the school curriculum. I did not intend to make a better world or a new generation of activists or whatever, just to do my job and create the conditions for the kids to do theirs. This was the zenit of my learning and more than a decade of teaching groups aged from 3 to 13, the place where I felt the most professional and honest.

I don't believe that morality works via transmission, though I think you can influence others' moral views in some ways (not necessarily the way you'd like to).

At any rate, I'd say the most important moral principles to try to instill would be:

* General laissez-fairism. Letting people do their own thing as much as possible.
* Not overreacting to things one doesn't agree with morally. The goal should rather be to underreact as much as possible (because folks are going to naturally tend to overreact).
* Having compassion and empathy towards others, even people with whom you don't at all agree with, including people who are doing things that you feel are morally wrong.
* Being tolerant of and ideally accepting of difference.
* Love/charity/being not only willing but motivated to help other people out, help them achieve their authenticity, etc.

Don't get side tracked on Plato's fantasies. They are as bad as religion is for deceiving people. And the problem with religion is that once you lose your religion then you ethics go out the window with it.

Children must learn many things. Here is a short list:

1 - How to play nicely together.

2 - Not to hurt anybody else.

3 - How to tell the truth always.

4 - Not to play with fire.

5 - Not to play in or near traffic.

6 - Boys should never hit girls.

7 - Girls should not hit each other.

8 - From Disney, if you cannot say something nice do not say anything at all.

9 - How to share their toys.

10 - Never to take anything that belongs to someone else.

11 - From DHS, if you see something say something.

12 - Always be respectful of their teachers and parents.

13 - The principal is your pal.

Hey hks, I was hoping to get your perspective on 6 & 7 on your list. "6 - Boys should never hit girls. 7 - Girls should not hit each other."

Do you also feel that boys should not hit each other and that girls should not hit boys (Generally) ?
Sorry if your rule#2 "Not to hurt anybody else." was meant to already imply either/both of those things and rule 6 + 7 are separate rules from #2 to stress their importance, I just wanted to be clear.

Additionally, I grew up being taught #6 on your list "Boys should never hit girls." and while I agree and think it is important enough to be stated separately I think the insistence on boys specifically not hitting girls can undermine girls and potentially send the wrong message to boys, thoughts?

Such an interesting question, Dexter, and such a daunting task in this time.
As an erstwhile teacher, from a family of congenital teachers, I seem to be far less sanguine than most of the respondents here.
For me, it critically depends on your specific context (which I'm far from understanding), but my general sense is that, if whatever values you sought to teach strayed much from the vanilla inclusionism of the present pedagogical climate, you may be in for significant, stressful, and even job-threatening friction.
But on the other hand, hardly any values that (to me) seem truly worth teaching will be acceptable in that climate. (This is a key reason why institutional education is so ineffective in addressing the roots of the problems of our time, I think. But that's another topic.)
A potentially painful dilemma, which I truly hope you won't face.

If girls hit boys it is insignificant. Sometimes it even means love.

Boys will always be boys and hit each other. Ergo some martial arts training from an early age is appropriate and necessary. I favor judo starting at age 6, karate at age 12, and boxing at age 16.